Written by / Li Tease He Chang
Editor / Dong Yuqing
Universal Studios Beijing, which has been rumored for many years, has finally officially announced that it will officially start trial operation on September 1.
As an international theme park that integrates jurassic park, Harry Potter Wizarding World, Kung Fu Panda, Minion Paradise, Future Water World and many other movie IPs, Universal Studios is well-known. Originating from Hollywood's film culture, Universal Studios transformed part of its studios into Universal Studios and opened it to the public in 1963, which became the original appearance of Universal Studios.
In the years since, Universal Orlando Studios, Universal Osaka in Japan and Universal Studios Singapore have also opened, becoming entertainment havens for many adults.
Photo / Visual China
As the world's fifth Universal Studios, Universal Studios Beijing is expected to do more. Although Universal Studios has been in the stage of pressure internal testing, during which it is only open to invited users, and has not sold any tickets to the public, as soon as the news of the upcoming opening came out, it was still immediately on Weibo's hot search, and some users asked on social platforms: "Who has the resources of Universal Studios?" Good to go! ”
From the scalper fares currently circulating on the market, we can also understand the public's enthusiasm for Universal Studios Beijing. On August 20, after the announcement of the launch of Universal Studios Beijing, the tickets of scalpers began to rise, and the price rose from 1,000 yuan to a maximum of 7,000 or 8,000 yuan, an astonishing increase. There are even scalpers who have been detained for reselling their internal test qualifications.
Behind the hard-to-find tickets, what is the experience of Universal Studios Beijing? Behind the high price of scalper tickets, what is the business experience of the theme park?
A ticket is difficult to find, and the internal test ticket is speculated to thousands of yuan by scalpers
"Happy loading, looking forward to meeting universal beijing resort", on August 19, 2021, a weibo post from Universal Studios Beijing official micro made universal fans boil. Universal Studios Beijing, which has been in existence for about 20 years, built for nearly 7 years, and cost tens of billions of dollars, is finally coming.
As a global international theme park, Universal Studios Beijing has its own great attraction. There are seven themed attractions, namely: Kung Fu Panda Gaishi, Transformers Base, Minion Paradise, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Jurassic World Nubra Island, Hollywood and Future Water World, as well as 37 riding entertainment facilities and landmark attractions, 24 performances.
Therefore, in the past year or so, although it has not yet officially met with the public, all kinds of news of the opening of Universal Studios Beijing have long been heard. Since the announcement of the opening of Universal Studios beijing in May 2021 at the end of last year, the news of the opening of Universal Studios Beijing has been postponed for several months, until it is announced that the staff pressure internal test will be opened on August 20, and Universal Studios Beijing will finally officially come out.
Originally, according to Universal Studios' plan, each employee had 5 tickets in their hands, and the people who experienced Universal Studios for the first time should be some partners, employees and their families.
However, after the news came out, the experience qualification of Universal Beijing Resort was regarded by many tourists as "fragrant food", which also made scalpers take advantage of loopholes and sell internal test tickets. Soon, in the social circle of scalpers, "August 26 to September 15", "limit the flow of about 2,000 people, only 20 internal test places per day", "ticket prices from 3,000 yuan" the news will continue to brush the screen.
According to AI Finance and Economics, many scalpers are qualified to obtain tickets by communicating with the internal test qualification codes of official contract employees, and a person who works inside Universal Studios in Beijing told AI Finance and Economics, "Scalpers will purchase the internal test qualification invitation code for about 1,000 yuan through the contractor, and the reservation SMS after the user's real name registration can be sold as an internal ticket." ”
In the early days, the ticket price of scalpers was only about 1,000 yuan, but with the rise of Universal Studios' popularity and the scarcity of tickets, the original ticket price of 1,000 yuan began to rise continuously. A scalper told AI Finance and Economics that in August, because it was still the internal test period, the price of the internal test ticket was higher, and individual tickets had been priced at 7,000 yuan to 8,000 yuan, and the trial operation tickets in September were still relatively sufficient. If you want to wait until less than 2,000 yuan, you need to wait at least until october after the official opening of the park.
At present, the scalper's ticket speculation behavior has attracted the attention of the authorities. On August 21, the day after the internal test, the official microblog of the Tongzhou Branch of the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau reported that due to the reselling of Universal Studios internal test experience qualifications and disrupting the normal business order, 4 violators have been administratively detained according to law, and the price of the internal test qualifications that were resold ranged from 1,000 yuan to 5,000 yuan.
Some scalpers are already jealous of this. According to a scalper, "the supervision of the police and the platform is very strict, and if it is found, it will be directly removed from the shelves." ”
However, there are still scalpers who use tricks to avoid tracing, such as up to five tickets at a time. At the same time, scalpers have also begun to fall into the "inner volume", scalpers sell tickets mostly for gang behavior, mainly relying on the adoption of distribution, to obtain commission commissions, and due to fierce competition, there are often reported to each other.
The scalper's wanton illegal resale has also given some illegal ticket sellers who sell fake tickets room to live. According to previous media reports, from August 21 to 22, in just two days, some users encountered three scammers in succession in the process of seeking tickets for Universal Studios on August 28, and lost 2,000 yuan in deposits. At present, the user has called the police, and the police have also filed a case.
According to universal studios official customer service to AI Finance and Economics, if the internal test code is true, it is indeed the only voucher to enter the park, if you are deceived, you can contact the public account to register the purchase record, buyer information, registration information, but the park is not responsible for refunds.
At present, there is no official information released about the ticket prices after the official opening of Universal Studios Beijing. However, AI Finance and Economics has learned that a number of scalpers have released trial operation/normal park opening booking information in the circle of friends. It said, "Weekday tickets 599 yuan / ticket, weekends 739 yuan / ticket, festival days 799 yuan / zhang." However, as of now, the official ticketing channel has not been opened, and the ticketing price has not been officially announced.
Excited tourists
Although it has not yet officially opened, there are many tourists who are looking forward to Universal Studios Beijing.
Before the opening of the park, Universal Studios has been on Weibo's hot search for many times because of "earthy promotional videos" and "prices". According to official information, Universal Studios Beijing spends tens of billions of dollars, is controlled and operated by Hollywood, and equipment and machinery are specially transported from abroad, which further increases the expectations of tourists.
Xiao Yan, who got the employee tickets, was the first lucky one to participate in the internal test. On the morning of August 28, departing from the downtown area of Beijing, Xiao yan went straight to the outskirts of Tongzhou. An hour and a half later, she was standing at the gate of Universal Studios Beijing, where an iconic globe engraved with "Universal Studio" quickly caught her attention.
This is Already Xiao Yan's second experience of the Universal Studios project. The last trip to los Angeles in the United States, xiao Yan was deeply impressed, and she was even more looking forward to this round the world trip.
Yu Hong, another tourist who was lucky enough to qualify for the private beta, said that he had been looking forward to his trip to Universal Studios Beijing since a week ago and was "always in a state of excitement."
(Photo/Courtesy of respondents)
At 8:00 a.m. on August 28, Yu Hong began waiting outside the main gate of Universal Studios Beijing. She told AI Finance and Economics that the opening time of the park is 9 a.m., and in order to experience more projects as soon as possible, she will leave from home at 7 o'clock and arrive before 8 o'clock. However, at this point, a very large number of users have started queuing.
This is also what surprised Xiao Yan, although it was only an internal test for the invited group, but the tourists at Universal Studios Beijing were already in an endless stream. In many popular attractions, such as Jurassic Theme Park, Century Adventure, Transformers Base and other project venues, the queue of tourists has been lined up from indoors to outdoors. If you want to experience the project, you often need to queue for an hour or so, "queue for an hour, experience two minutes".
In order to experience the park equipment more efficiently, Yu Hong formulated a careful play plan. After entering the park with the first wave of electronic tickets, Yu Hong and his friends soared all the way to the second batch of Decepticon Roller Coasters , which is also one of the hottest projects in the park, and Yu Hong described it as "on par with the Roller Coasters of Happy Valley". When passing through here again, most of the tourists had already entered the park, and Yu Hong found that he had already lined up in a long line, and he needed to wait at least 120 minutes to play. In addition, the "Tinder Source Battle" of the same Transformers IP, the "Harry Potter and Forbidden Journey" of the Harry Potter series, "Eagle Horse Flight" and the Jurassic Adventure wait time is more than 1 hour.
The Harry Potter IP is Xiao Yan's most anticipated project. In order to go deeper into the experience, Xiao Yan also spent 800 yuan to buy the Harry Potter magic robe and 300 yuan to buy the interactive magic wand. "The price of the magic robe is cheaper than that of the United States", Xiao Yan was very pleased with the price, "the unicorn bubble machine can be consumed for dozens of dollars, and the price is similar to Disney." "And the price of catering is not as sky-high as the internet rumors." According to Xiao Yan's observation, tourists who choose to eat in the scenic spot still account for the majority, "In principle, the scenic spot does not allow you to bring food, and some restaurants still need to queue up for meals." ”
Last year, Universal Studios Beijing was exposed to the high price of catering in the park, and some users who participated in the internal test posted shopping receipts - 158 yuan for the naked-eye steak sandwich, 138 yuan for miyho shrimp balls, 98 yuan for rainbow milkshakes, 28 yuan for Coca-Cola refills, etc., which triggered heated discussions. In order to make full use of the limited time, Yu Hong chose to bring some of her own meals and gave up the punch card of the restaurant in the park. She said that on the one hand, she hopes to feel the various projects, and on the other hand, she also takes into account the cost performance. "The projects look good, but I heard that the food in the restaurant is more average."
However, Yu Hong also passed by the bar selling drinks and snacks, butterfly bags and jishi fruit each 30 yuan, drinks 15 yuan, mineral water 10 yuan, butter beer price is 50 yuan. Yu Hong bought a fruit cup for 25 yuan, "It feels ok, and the scenic spot is about the same price." ”
And when it comes to immersive feelings. "Domestic customers are more like gods, foreign countries feel like friends," Xiao Yan said, "the attitude of the domestic staff is very good, but more restrained." For example, in the small train project of the Harry Potter scenic spot, the car stewards of the Los Angeles campus will enthusiastically chat and take photos, make some more dramatic language actions, and let tourists enter the play. The car stewards in the Beijing park should be more restrained and will not be exaggerated. ”
In fact, compared with Universal Studios in Los Angeles, Beijing is undoubtedly larger in size and has more people. At present, Universal Studios is only open for the first phase, and with the construction of the next phases of the second and third phases of the project, Universal Beijing Resort will eventually cover an area of 4 square kilometers, which will become the world's largest Universal Studios theme park.
In the research report, CITIC Construction Investment expects that Universal Studios Beijing will receive about 15 million to 20 million tourists a year, and the unit price of customers is expected to exceed 1500 yuan, and the annual turnover after maturity will be about 25 billion yuan to 30 billion yuan.
The business of the theme park
Before entering China, Universal Studios and Disney, as two major film and television theme IP parks, have long been international rivals.
Universal Studios and Disney, not only are strategically similar, they both rely on IP to start, and the location is also quite close, showing a confrontation with each other. For example, among the 6 Disneys in the world, 2 in the United States, 3 in Asia, and 5 Universal Studios in the world are also 2 in the United States and 3 in Asia.
However, in terms of audience, the two are different, Holding popular IPs such as "Harry Potter", "Transformers" and "Jurassic World", Universal Studios has attracted many adult tourist groups with its high-tech rides and movie effects, and the age groups of tourists are wider. Disneyland, with its strong "Mickey Mouse" IP influence and rich business experience, is quite popular with parent-child groups.
Nowadays, Shanghai Disneyland, which has preemptively entered The domestic theme park market, has been highly recognized. According to the data, in 2020, Shanghai Disneyland received 5.5 million visitors, equivalent to 52% of 2019, and its annual revenue was equivalent to 54%, becoming the world's best large-scale theme park to recover since the epidemic.
Not long ago, Shanghai Disneyland quietly raised the ticket price. This is also the third time that Shanghai Disneyland has raised ticket prices since its opening five years ago. At the beginning of the park, it offers two options: weekday tickets and peak day tickets, the former priced at 370 yuan and the latter at 499 yuan. Since January 9, 2022, the regular day ticket will be adjusted to 435 yuan, the special regular day is 545 yuan, the peak day is 659 yuan, and the special peak day is 769 yuan.
As a seed player against Disneyland, Universal Studios' business challenges are not small. The price of Universal Studios will determine the enthusiasm of tourists to a certain extent. According to many ticketing personnel, the price after stabilization is basically benchmarked against Disney, and the approximate price is about 500 yuan, which will not be as outrageous as it is now speculated.
In terms of IP operation, it replicates the successful experience of localization of Universal Studios Japan in the past. In order to attract Japanese tourists to play, Universal Studios Japan joined the local IP and added factors such as Mario and Conan, with remarkable results. Universal Studios Beijing has also put a lot of effort into local IP, introducing the Kung Fu Panda Park in the hope of gaining the favor of Chinese tourists.
In fact, for a theme park, its revenue can be roughly divided into two parts, one is the ticket, and the other is the consumption of catering, derivatives and so on after entering the park. In the case of Disney, for example, its fiscal 2019 ticket revenue was $7.5 billion, while other revenues in the theme park, experience and product business segments came from secondary consumption after entering the park - food and beverage sales revenue of $5.96 billion, hotel, cruise ships, etc. revenue of $6.27 billion, IP licensing development and self-operated commemorative merchandise revenue of $4.52 billion, and park leasing and sales revenue of $1.94 billion, which together is much higher than the revenue of the tickets themselves.
Universal Studios' revenue structure is generally the same, and like Disney, because it has a very well-known IP, souvenir sales are also regarded as a key step in its "gold absorption". After brushing up all the key projects, Yu Hong and her friends went to the stores in the park to shop. Hair bands 135 yuan, refrigerator stickers more than 70 yuan, minions dolls 179 yuan... She lamented that "it is still quite expensive", but still bought two work card bags and a refrigerator sticker at the minion park store, costing a total of 195 yuan. Paying for the IP premium, she thinks, is "worth it."
In addition to the operation of the park, Universal Studios, located in Tongzhou District, the sub-center of Beijing, has been placed on the high hope of enhancing regional commerce and driving urban cultural tourism. According to Song Yu, chairman of BTG, in an interview, after the opening of the park, Universal Beijing Resort is expected to receive 10 million to 12 million tourists every year. With the launch of Universal Studios, it will effectively leverage the development of many related industries such as tourism and economy in the surrounding areas.
Looking at the whole country, the landing of Universal Studios Beijing Resort has a particularly significant pull effect on the park market in the north. According to the statistics of Sullivan Research Institute, among the world-renowned theme park brands that will soon land in China, Disney, Time Warner DreamWorks, Legoland, and Six Flags have all chosen the southern location, and only Universal Studios is in Beijing.
Universal Studios, which has been in preparation for 20 years, can shake Disney's boss status? Can we single-handedly change the pattern of the North-South Paradise? It still takes time to test.
For domestic theme parks such as Happy Valley and Sunac Park, it also means the arrival of another strong opponent. Compared with the former, whether it is Disney or Universal Studios, it is more good at content and IP operations, has a strong brand appeal, and whether it can make the theme park business bigger, do a good job, and make a malleable value may be the problem that developers behind domestic theme parks should think more.
(Interns Xie Yining and Wei Han also contributed to this article)
This article is originally produced by AI Finance and Economics, an account of Caijing Tianxia Weekly, without permission, please do not reprint it on any channel or platform. Violators will be prosecuted.